1. Sharon L. Moore, RN, M.Ed., PhD Associate Professor,
Athabasca University Canada
Sue Hall, RN, Pastoral Care Nurse, Beverly Centre,
Calgary, AB Canada

2.  This research is funded by Alberta Health
Services and Alberta Seniors as part of the
Collaborative Research Grant Initiative:
Mental Wellness in Seniors and Persons with
Disabilities
 Care Centre Residents
 Hope Mentors

4.  What is the experience of older adults
participating in a hope focused group?

5. • Foster the intentional use of hope through a
small group program for residents in long term
care
• Assess the impact of this program from the
resident’s perspective
• Develop a facilitator’s guide as a prototype for
use in other long-term care settings

6. • Development of an eight session hope focused
curriculum – using Finding Hope as a “text book”
• Offering of the curriculum in a small group setting
of long term care residents
• Assessment of residents perceptions of hope pre
and post curriculum
• Analysis of data gathered in interviews and
observations throughout the group process

7. Session: 1 Exploring the concept of hope?
 What is hope?
 How do residents define hope for themselves?
Session 2: Notice signs of hope.
 What are the signs of hope in everyday life?
Session 3: Listening to the voices of hope.
 What voices of hope have you heard?
Session 4: Looking back at personal experiences of hope.
 What are your hope stories?


8. Session 5: Hope in unexpected places.
 Where have you found hope that surprised you?
 Where have you noticed hope that you wouldn’t have expected?
Session 6: Borrow hope. Exploring the concept of borrowing
and lending hope.
 In what ways have you ever given or leant hope to another
person?
 Have there been times when you felt someone gave you hope?
Session 7: Make one small difference.
 What can I do this week that would make a small difference?
Session 8: Celebrate hope
 Wrap up and celebrate hope?
 How will you choose to make hope more visible?

9.  Orientation to project
 Review of ethics and option to participate or not
 Brief recap of previous session focus
 Reading of the current “hope strategy”
 Questions/discussion about hope strategy
 Summary and “homework” for next session

10. “I think this study will be interesting.”
“I sure believe in hope. You can’t live without it.”
“I’m not a good speaker but I think it’s a good
project and I’m glad to be part of it. And I’ll have
a lot to learn”.
“It’s a very good program. If I can do something
everyday to lift someone’s spirit it’s a good thing
and I’m lifted up in doing something for someone
else”.

11. “Hope is a little word with a lot of meaning”
“Hoping for the future”
“We have a choice everyday about how we choose.
When we make the right choices we start the day
right”.
“When you fall it means you have another chance.
Hope means you always have another chance”.
“You can choose your attitude”

12. Imagining another perspective
 “This place”
 “This meeting”
 “I’m here today”
 “I didn’t break anything (when I fell)”
 “We’re here”
 “Make the right choices today”

13. Group is progressing well.
 Women are really enjoying & looking forward to the
group each week
 They are trying to make hope more visible. They talk
about hope outside the group
 Building trust has been important
 Concerned for each other and for group leaders
 Conversations have become much deeper over the course
of the group

14. “As long as you have breath don’t give up hope”.
“As long as there’s life, there’s hope”.

15. Thank you
Questions?????
sharon.moore@athabascau.ca